Chapter Text
It wasn’t the first time Till had raced under a night sky blazing with stars. It wasn’t the first time his heart had been so heavy, so full, ready to burst at the seams. He remembered it all from before and he carried it with him now.
He’d known it was him from the moment the gossip had reached him. A new family moving into the neighborhood, a new student joining the school. A magnetic pull, a red string, a moth to a flame.
And as he ran, that life flashed before his eyes. That flaming sky, that wild snaggletoothed smile, that hand in his that he’d let go. That stage, the pouring rain, those lips on his. That constant presence until at once it disappeared. The pain, the joy, the grief, the love.
The life that he’d gotten to live because of him, because of what he’d done for him, and all that he’d never gotten the chance to tell him.
He couldn’t let this second chance go to waste, he couldn’t mess it up this time. He just needed to find him and he knew just where to look. There was only one spot in this town where you could see the stars so well.
Just beyond the trees that lined the high school was a grassy field far away where the lights couldn’t obstruct the view and there he lay right in the middle of it, gazing up at the star-speckled sky. He sat up when he sensed Till’s presence, quickly locking him in his gaze. His hair was wavier and messier than the Ivan that Till remembered, his figure far healthier and not quite so scrawny, and a pair of turquoise glasses rested on the bridge of his nose.
And just at the mere sight of him, that red thread that held Till’s entire being together finally snapped. Eyes welling with tears, he dashed across the grass, floating upon waves of stardust and collapsing into Ivan’s arms.
It was gentle, far gentler than they’d ever been, than they’d ever known how to be. Ivan clung to him with trembling hands and Till held him like he might shatter in his arms. And when Till pulled away to cup Ivan’s face in his hands, there was doubt and fragility and hesitance etched into those angelic features. But the way the stars reflected in the deep abyss of those eyes was just the same as it had always been and Till knew that Ivan remembered just as well as he did.
But this time it would be different. This time they had forever by their side.
In a movement swifter than his mind could process, Till’s hand slipped down to Ivan’s chin, tilting his face up toward his own, and without a moment’s hesitation he planted his lips onto his. He marveled at the way Ivan melted into him, lifetimes of desire and yearning finally fulfilled. It was their first kiss and it wasn’t, their goodbye to the horrors that haunted their minds and their hello to the future that lay ahead.
The snicker that escaped from Ivan’s mouth was music to Till’s ears as his lips trailed along Ivan’s jawline and neck. “What, did you really miss me?”
“Shut up, you asshole.” He nipped at Ivan’s collarbone in retaliation before pulling away, resting his forehead against Ivan’s.
The smirk on Ivan’s face softened into a delicate smile, his voice dipping to a whisper. “I have so much to tell you.”
So much to say, and all the time in the world. Till’s heart soared as he traced a thumb along the soft, warm, lively skin of Ivan’s cheek. “Me too,” he said. “Let’s do it right this time, shall we?”